Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image capturing system with a camera unit, for capturing images of the outside area of a motor vehicle according to the preamble of claim 1. The image capturing system is equipped with a camera unit for capturing images of the outside area of the motor vehicle and a protective element, wherein at least the camera unit and/or the protective element can be moved via a mechanism by means of a drive from at least a closed position into at least an open position, wherein in the closed position of the protective element at least one lens of the camera unit is located behind the protective element so as to be inaccessible from outside, and in the open position at least the lens of the camera unit is exposed by the protective element for capturing images.
Description of Related Art
It is known that state-of-the-art image capturing systems are equipped with a camera unit, which can be moved via a drive from a closed position to an open position and vice-versa. Moreover the DE 20 2013 105 314 U1 has disclosed a motor vehicle lock comprising a locking mechanism, in which a drive and a flexible cable pull means is used to achieve the corresponding operating states.
The disadvantage with image capturing systems of the kind mentioned above consists in that the image capturing system, for installation in a motor vehicle, must provide sufficient installation space, so that the drive for the camera unit can be positioned in such a way that force transfer from the drive to the camera unit can be established via a rigid transfer element. Such systems are very rigid as regards their use on a respective vehicle. It is thus not possible to adapt them to suit different vehicle and installation situations.